Friday, October 3, 2008

The Unsinkable Sarah Palin

Sarah Palin has done it again.

Her acceptance speech at the Republican national convention energized the GOP and enthralled the nation. It also sent the MSM into its biggest panic since Richard Nixon won re-election in 1972 by the greatest landslide in history. Having failed to find or create a scandal that would drive her from the ticket or at least neutralize her effectiveness, the media decided to "quayle" her, that is, to reduce all her accomplishments to one sound bite. Since they couldn't catch her in a misspelling, they tried to force her into a gaffe of the kind that Biden commits without being, well, bidden. Not since medieval inquisitors invented the damned-if-you-do-damned-if-you-don't interrogatory were more of these questions hurled at any candidate in history. Her interviews were bobby-trapped from beginning to end, and though she masterfully sidestepped these traps, the media characterized her answers not as tactical maneuvers but evasions and attributed these to lack of experience (if not ignorance) rather than to a healthy distrust of their motives.

I have never understood why any candidate -- and, especially, a Republican -- would ever agree to an interview by the MSM without specifying that it is to be aired in its entirety without deletions of any kind: a 40-minute interview yielding 40 minutes of air time. Nothing is more absurd than to allow the interviewer to assemble a new and different interview from disjointed bits of the original and air it as if it were in fact the original, with no acknowledgment that it is at best an extract or at worst a pastiche.

The MSM interviews of Sarah Palin were conducted with one purpose in mind -- to make the interviewer look good: not professional but omniscient, not fair but didactic, the center of attention rather than a conduit for information. The Gibson and Couric interviews were supernumerary debates without the right of rebuttal and completely scripted on one part. To that end questions were fashioned which were intended not to extract information but to confound with extraneous information. Questions for which there were no right or wrong answers were framed as if there were only one correct answer and the candidate was castigated for not providing it on cue. Or the interviewer asked a question, answered the question herself and then demanded a different answer from the one and only answer.

I especially remember one question of the latter kind which deserved this rejoinder:

"In your 26 years in journalism, besides sleeping with half the executives at your network -- not to belabor that point, what else did you do to become the first prime time anchorwoman? You can come back to me with your answer when you can think of one." [Answer: "The other half."]

In the old days, when the media was not biased but for sale to the highest bidder, one had to pay a lot of money for such hatchet jobs. Now the Democratic Party receives it as tribute from the MSM.

Well, last night's debate levelled the playing field again and Sarah Palin was able to speak to America without interlocutors. Her warmth and effervescence, enthusiasm and genuineness, were on full display but also her formidable forensic skills, which were more than a match for the veteran debater. The fact that Biden was at his best, too, only highlighted the level of her own performance. Yes, she can play with the big boys; she, in fact, whipped the big boys from both parties in Alaska and it doesn't seem like she will have much trouble doing so in the Senate when she presides it. When Sarah Palin is vice president her rival won't be Biden but Pelosi and that is a contest that will also be worth watching.

Also see:

Katie Couric Wants to be a "Relatively Intelligent Person"

26 comments:

Alex said...

Cmon' Manuel, evasiveness and winks aren't forensic skills. And how is "what newspapers and magazines do you read?" (as a follow-up, no less) a gotcha question?

Fantomas said...

I NEED HELP

Necesito que me ayuden para poner nombre a mi nueva seccion en mi diario digital

Hasta ahora tengo este titulo


" 8 años, Babalandia tendra que chuparse al negro"

Se aceptan sugerencias

Fantomas said...

John Mc Cain ABANDONA a Michigan

Que clase de patriota ...Le da las espaldas a sus compluebanos

De que sirvio el coraje en Vietnam ayer cuando no puede defender y trabajar por los residentes de Michigan hoy

Obama's lead in PA 10%

Pobrecita CLaudia

Manuel A.Tellechea said...

alex:

Despite the winks and all (and Joe Biden had some interesting facial expressions of his own), I was impressed by Sarah Palin's performance. We are not living in the days of the Lincoln-Douglas debates. That level of precision, eloquence and prolixity would be intolerable to most Americans today.

The moderator of the debate, to her credit and despite all expectations to the contrary, was fair and did not try to grab the spotlight. And nothing was left on the cutting room floor.

Fantomas said...

Manuel la moderadora fue muy profesional y elocuente - Aun cuando todos sabemos su inclinacion por el candidato Obama

Vana said...

She nailed it! she seemed more eloquent than Biden.

Fantomas said...

Vana que sabes tu de eloquencia

Ya es hora que la Palin guarde al bebito y no lo exponga ante las camaras, please someone tell her

I do not feel a bit sorry for her in that regards

She is not the only one in that situation

Fantomas said...

Tic, tac, tic, tac, tic , tac , tic, tac, tic, tac, tic, tac, tic, tac, tic, tac

Manuel se acerca la hora del cierre definitivo

Como voy a gozar.............................

Who won the VP debate

Biden 76%
Palin 22%

Sharpshooter said...

Manuel,
how come Biden unbelievable gaffe about TV in 1929 and FDR being the President then, does not get any play and no one seems to care that a Senator with many years in the Senate and a Democrat to boot, did not even know FDR was elected in 1932?
Obama claims there are 57 States and no cares. The MSM is in bed with the Obama campaign and Katie Couric is an absolute idiot who should have never been an anchorwoman.

Sharpshooter said...

{{{{DRUDGE POLL}}}} WHO WON THE VICE PRESIDENTIAL DEBATE?...

BIDEN

28% 137,150
PALIN

70% 336,198
NEITHER

2% 8,871

Total Votes: 482,219

Anonymous said...

Check this out: CNN overnight poll

Is Palin qualified to serve as president?


Yes

Before debate: 42
After debate: 46


No

Before debate: 54
After debate: 53

Agustin Bugarron, Drudge is a right wing site, what did you expect?

You should do Matt, he's a big homo.

Anonymous said...

How old is Sarah's baby?

That thing didn't move. Did they dope it up?

It looks like a cabbage patch doll.

Anonymous said...

Who won the VP debate?

Fri Oct 3, 12:31 PM ET


After Sarah Palin's interview with Katie Couric, many predicted her debate with Senator Joe Biden would be another "moose in the headlights" train wreck. That wasn't the case. The Alaska governor held her own and had a clear command of the facts. But was she good enough to win?

Clearly, voters want to know. After the debate, searches spiked on "who won the vice presidential debate" and "who is the vp debate winner." The Buzz contains a slew of analysis pieces on who came out on top, but like everything else in politics, the answer depends on who you ask.



CNN conducted a national poll and found that Senator Biden won, but that Gov. Palin "exceeded expectations." CNN also found that Palin topped Biden on likability, but Biden was viewed to be more qualified for the job.

Politico acknowledges that Palin escaped a "demolition derby moment," but claimed Biden was still the clear winner. "The financial meltdown has put a new premium on competence, and Palin did nothing to show she is ready to be in charge." Still, Palin's "folksy charm" was, for the most part, well received, and on occasion came with a "sharp edge."

Similar analysis can be found at Time.com. Joe Klein writes that while Sarah Palin "did fine," Joe Biden "demonstrated a real knowledge of the issues." Biden, in Klein's opinion, also had the most memorable moment of the debate when he spoke about his wife's death and what it was like to be a single parent. That moment, according to Klein, "was more real than anything Palin said all night."

Still, Ms. Palin's "you betcha" phrases drew a tremendous amount of search interest. In referencing the average American, she used the phrase "Joe Sixpack." The term immediately shot up in Search ("Hockey Mom" is so last month). Palin also referred to John McCain as "the maverick" several times. For viewers, this clearly inspired memories of one of Tom Cruise's greatest hits. That's right, lookups on "top gun maverick" went supersonic. Finally, Palin's mispronunciation of the word "nuclear" drew an atomic level of searches for "nuclear vs. nucular." Remember: when in doubt, just sound it out.

Fantomas said...

Fariñas tu eres estupido o te haces

Coño si el drudge report es mi sitio favorito lo visito 99 veces al dia



Pero la gran mayoria de los que votaron en esa encuesta son Republicanos y conservadores como yo

asi que no puedes utilizar esa encuesta porque definitivamente esta diseñada para favorecernos

Si en verdad quieres saber quien gano podriamos ver que dice Gallup Poll al respecto

My 2 cents for ya

Republicano , Cubano, por el cambio

Anonymous said...

Se han dado cuenta que cuando Palin habla parece que tiene un pingon en la boca?

Anonymous said...

Mansuelo, by supporting Sarah it appears you think with your pinga.

Is your sex life ok? Do you have a sex partner? Is he/she obese?

Anonymous said...

Wow, it is unbelieve that you guys can support someone like Pailin who belongs to the John Birch society. A vicious, anti-hispanic KKK group that Tom Trancredo belongs to. And Palin's husband is a well-known anti-hispanic bigot. Dont worry though, it will all be dropped in the days immediately before the general election.

Fantomas said...

http://www.martinoticias.com/media/audio/V-096_081003.wma

Escuchen este audio

Señores TENEMOS QUE PRENDER LA MECHA

Cari said...

Manuel:

In view of most of the comments here, it is evident that most people don't have the capacity to see or hear straight. I don't know why one has to demean and degrade an opponent just because one does not agree with their political position. I think Biden is wrong on everything, but I can say that he did well in the debate. I also think that Bill Clinton is a jerk, but I can admit that he has charisma and is a very good politician. I disagree with everything both of these men represent, but I can also see their strong points and admit them.

It is an over used tactic of leftists, when they can find nothing else, to make everybody who disagrees with them as stupid.
This behavior implies laziness and lack of critical thinking. I see this behavior by leftists both here and in Cuba.

I can only surmise that all of the indoctrination diminishes the capacity for clear thinking?

Sarah is an excellent communicator and I can only wish she could debate the Obamasiah.

Oh, and Alex, the entire Couric interview was edited...how do you know that she didn't/couldn't answer? If that's the best you can do, how do you explain the extra 7 or is it 8 states that Obama added to the USA? Or did FDR really address the Nation via TV in 1929?
Just wondering.

Alex said...

Cari: because the question and non-answer was continuous. No cut, no edits. They were walking and the camera was on dolly back. That's how I know and you would too, if you took the blinders off.

Anonymous said...

Cari,


No, it is just that Cuban-Americans are willing to wildly line up behind Palin, the female version of Tom Trancredo. And her Hispanic hating, snow-machine racing husband.

Cari said...

Anon at 7:40 AM:

Prove it.

Alex:
You didn't answer my question...explain your idol's huge gaffe and that's not the only one. By your standards, he's even stupider than Palin. And what about the lack of knowledge of Mr. Biden. How stupid is that? You're so blind and full of hatred, you can't even see your own double standard.

Alex said...

Cari: I answered your question, which was:

"the entire Couric interview was edited...how do you know that she didn't/couldn't answer?"

That's a question, right? I understand if you didn't like the answer because it's unimpeacheable. You went to Youtube, saw the video, noted there were no cuts and realized you put your foot in your mouth. Don't be so hard on yourself. It happens to the best of us.

Now, everything that came after "If that's the best you can do" were not questions but rhetorical questions. Those by definition need not to be answered and you weren't actually looking for an answer.

I'll indulge you a bit more, Cari, but you have to bring your A game. If not, I get bored. Let's see if you can do better than "blind and full of hatred".

Sharpshooter said...

Alex,
dime de lo que pretendes y te dire de lo que careces.
You did not answer Cari's question. Joe Biden is an idiot who does not go by one week before inserting his foot in his mouth. If he did even know TV was invented in the 1940's and that FDR, an idol for the Democrats was elected in 1932, how can I trust this idiot on any issue of foreign policy?

Alex said...

I'm sorry Agustin, I can't waste my time with somebody who does not comprehend what a rhetorical question is. If you want to know my opinion of Biden, go to my blog and search for his name. If what you want to do is rant, that doesn't require an answer either.

Sharpshooter said...

Alex,
sorry, I stopped visiting your blog when you insulted me and treated me with contempt because I questioned BHO's actions. You are free to support whomever the hell you like but that does not mean I have to bear your stupidity and insults. Thanks, but no thanks.
Again, dime de lo que pretendes y te dire de lo que careces.
With folks like you, I apply the motto: ignorance is bliss.